Campaign Trail Results: Game #726956
Play The Campaign Trail
This Game:
- Year: 1960
- Player Candidate: John F. Kennedy
- Running Mate: Lyndon Johnson
- Difficulty Level: Easy
- Winner Take All Mode?: Yes
- Game Played:
- benanthonysavage
View overall results, or a specific state:
Candidate | Electoral Votes | Popular Votes | Pop. Vote % |
---|---|---|---|
---- Richard Nixon | 476 | 35,798,932 | 53.75 |
---- John F. Kennedy | 47 | 30,493,520 | 45.78 |
---- Harry Byrd | 14 | 314,473 | 0.47 |
Visits:
- Texas:3
- Alabama:2
- Mississippi:2
- South Carolina:2
- Arkansas:1
- Florida:1
- West Virginia:1
Answers:
- What kind of tone will you attempt to set in your campaign this fall?I have always been on the more moderate wing of the party. We need to emphasize my anti-Communism and my record as a Senator if we hope to win back the Eisenhower Democrats.
- What do you have to say about the selection of Lyndon Johnson as your running mate?Lyndon Johnson is a loyal Southerner and Senator from Texas who will spare no effort to advance a Democratic agenda.
- Lady Bird Johnson, LBJ's wife, has been spat on by a gathering of far-right protestors in a Dallas hotel lobby. What are your thoughts?I have no real comment to make, but I'm sure that the voters in Texas will be incensed at the incivility of this episode.
- There has been a proposal for a series of television debates between you and Kennedy. Is this something you are interested in?Let's be cautious with this idea. Nixon is a skilled debater, and the last thing we need right now is a campaign setback on national television.
- Anti-Catholicism has been a huge issue thus far in the campaign, with hundreds of pamphlets and leaflets being distributed across the South and Midwest. Do you have any comment?I will attack the idea that any good Protestant would vote against my candidacy because I happen to be a Catholic.
- Anti-Catholicism continues to be an issue. Major newspapers have published a statement by 150 Protestant clergy, including Norman Vincent Peale, opposing any Catholic as President. Do you have any comment?I am Catholic and proud of it. I will not respond to bigoted attacks or innuendo, and I trust that these attacks will only help me by driving higher Catholic turnout.
- There have been a large number of sit-ins recently, where black students and activists are sitting at whites-only lunch counters and department stores to advocate for desegregation. Do you support this movement?These activists are trespassing on the property of lawful businesses. I think there are better methods of pushing for change in the South.
- Richard Nixon has made "experience" the centerpiece of his campaign. What do you have to say on this point?Richard Nixon and I entered Congress in the same year, 1947, and have both served in the highest levels of government for some time.
- There was a recent effort in Congress to pass a program to provide medical care to elderly Americans, but it was narrowly defeated. Will you make a further push for this type of program as President?This program would represent a massive new financial commitment for the federal government, when care of the elderly properly rests with the affected family.
- Do you believe that the islands of Quemoy and Matsu should fall within the United States defense perimeter in Asia?It wouldn't be responsible of me to comment at this point. As President I will consult with our military leaders to determine what is appropriate.
- Is the United States adequately prepared to defend against the Soviet threat today?We can never be fully satisfied, but we have certainly held our own in the Cold War over the past eight years, compared to where we were during the Korean War.
- Do you believe the United States is adequately prepared to defend against the Soviet threat over the next ten years?I don't know, to be perfectly frank. Things are going well for now, but we will have many challenges to meet in places like Cuba, Lebanon, Latin America, Indochina, and elsewhere.
- During the Great Depression, the federal government began a policy of farm subsidies to stabilize farm incomes and to target a specific output of each crop. Are these policies still necessary in 1960?We have too much of a farm surplus right now, and we need to reduce subsidies for production so that prices can fall into balance and benefit the consumer.
- What is your opinion on the current level of education funding in the United States? Would you increase federal education funding, even if it meant higher taxes or a larger budget deficit?I'm not satisfied with how well teachers are paid in this country, and I'd encourage local jurisdictions to address this issue further. We need to strike a good balance in this regard.
- Recently, Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested at a sit-in in Atlanta, and has now been sentenced to four months in prison for failing to get a Georgia driver's license after moving to that state. Do you have any comment or action you would like to take?I will give a statement encouraging the State of Georgia to protect the safety of Mr. King, while criticizing him for participating in these inflammatory and illegal protests.
- Are you satisfied with the economy and the economic policies of this country over the past eight years?We must do better. Our present Administration has advocated a hard money policy which caused the recession of 1958 and left idle industrial capacity in our country.
- Do you support a minimum wage of $1.25 per hour, with some exceptions for small business? Such a measure was recently defeated in Congress.I support this measure, and believe it would be greatly beneficial to millions of American workers.
- How serious, at the current time, do you believe the internal Communist threat is?We should always be concerned about internal subversion, but the external Soviet threat should be our primary focus at this point.
- Should the United States apologize to the Soviet Union for the controversy surrounding the downed U-2 spy plane and surrounding espionage?A formal apology sounds a bit extreme, but we could certainly have expressed our regrets and perhaps saved the Paris Summit from collapse.
- Did Dwight Eisenhower do the right thing when he sent federal troops to Little Rock to ensure the integration of the high school there?We should have found a better way to resolve this issue, rather than intrude into the sovereignty of an American state.
- What would you do as President to combat increasing unemployment in America's industrial cities?We need more spending and should consider lower taxes to stimulate American economy and industry.
- Has the United States adequately defended against the Communist threat in Indochina? Would you support further action there if necessary?We need to make sure we don't overextend ourselves into new regions when the situation does not warrant it.
- What is your position on the power of labor unions in the United States?Labor unions have been needlessly undermined by the Taft-Hartley Act, and by self-serving investigations from both parties. I will do anything I can as President to support our nation's laborers.
- Do you believe that current levels of defense spending are adequate?In the final analysis, every dollar spent on defense is taken from more productive uses within our economy. I will look for ways to find common ground with the Soviet Union so that we can cut defense spending.
- Where will you spend your final day before the election?We will focus on Texas and the South.